“The American Nightmare” can now cross one story off his list, as Cody Rhodes emerged victorious in his WWE SummerSlam bout against Brock Lesnar – the third match between the two men in three months. Rhodes first defeated Lesnar during their match at WWE Backlash with a roll-up, but Lesnar won their second meeting via referee decision. With his victory today, it’s safe to say that Rhodes cemented himself as the winner of the program.
Tonight’s match was the longest of their three bouts, clocking in at around 17 minutes. Rhodes started off hot, but the two men went back and forth for much of the contest. There were callbacks to earlier moments in the feud, such as Lesnar locking Rhodes in a kimura lock, but, in the end, three Cross Rhodes were enough to put “The Beast Incarnate” down for the three-count. After the end of the match, Lesnar raised the arm of Rhodes in the ring, and the two men shared a brief hug and handshake.
With Rhodes and Lesnar likely going their separate ways, it will be interesting to see what’s next for both men. Despite his loss at WWE WrestleMania 39, it has long been believed that Rhodes could be the one to end the monumental run Roman Reigns has been on for the last three years. As for Lesnar, the 46-year-old has teased retirement multiple times in the past, and his future remains open-ended.